Death Toll Rises in Mideast Fight; Bunker Bombed  —  BEIRUT, Lebanon, July 19 — The deadliest day yet in the deepening two-front Middle East crisis claimed more than 70 lives on Wednesday in Lebanon, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and northern Israel, with no immediate cease-fire in sight.

First Bush Veto Maintains Limits on Stem Cell Use  —  WASHINGTON, July 19 — President Bush on Wednesday rejected legislation to expand federally supported embryonic stem cell research, exercising his first veto while putting himself at odds with many members of his own party and what polls say is a majority of the public.

Lieberman's Donors Include Many Who Favor Republicans  —  When it comes to supporting candidates for public office, the Associated General Contractors of America gives 90 percent of its campaign contributions to Republicans.  —  And then there is Senator Joseph I. Lieberman.

Iraqi Prime Minister Denounces Israel's Actions  —  BAGHDAD, Iraq, July 19 — Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki of Iraq on Wednesday forcefully denounced the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, marking a sharp break with President Bush's position and highlighting the growing power of a Shiite Muslim identity across the Middle East.

Ralph Reed's Comeuppance  —  Analysis: The former leader of the Christian right suffers a humiliating defeat in his Georgia primary race, thanks to his ties to a disgraced lobbyist  —  As a political operative Ralph Reed had a golden touch.  Four years ago in Georgia, as chair of the Republican Party …

India bloggers angry at net ban  —  India's burgeoning blogging community is up in arms against a government directive that they say has led to the blocking of their web logs.  —  The country's 153 internet service providers (ISP) have blocked 17 websites since last week on federal government orders.

DeWine blunder adds fuel to controversial Sept. 11 ad  —  The controversial video of the burning World Trade Center towers in a television campaign ad for Ohio Sen. Mike DeWine is doctored, U.S. News has learned.  The television spot, which has been lambasted by critics as a political exploitation …

Judge Overturns Wal-Mart Health Care Law  —  BALTIMORE (AP) — A first-of-its-kind state law that would have required Wal-Mart to spend more on employee health care in Maryland is invalid under federal law, a judge ruled Wednesday.  —  The state law would have required non-governmental employers …

The Bush Administration's and RNC's Nonsensical PR Games: Lebanon and Iraq  —  NEW YORK—I've just seen two reports about absolutely looney Bush administration steps in Iraq and Lebanon that have more to do with public relations management than they do, in either case, with "on the ground realities."

Corruption Issue Comes to Fore  —  Reed Is Seen as First Casualty, and Parties Brace for More  —  While political corruption has failed so far to take root as a national issue, the defeat of scandal-stained Ralph Reed in Georgia on Tuesday showed that federal investigators could tip …

GOP Lawmakers Edge Away From Optimism on Iraq  —  Faced with almost daily reports of sectarian carnage in Iraq, congressional Republicans are shifting their message on the war from speaking optimistically of progress to acknowledging the difficulty of the mission and pointing up mistakes in planning and execution.

Study Documents 'Ghetto Tax' Being Paid by the Urban Poor  —  WASHINGTON, July 18 — Drivers from low-income neighborhoods of New York, Hartford and Baltimore, insuring identical cars and with the same driving records as those from middle-class neighborhoods, paid $400 more on average for a year's insurance.